How to Save a Life -- Maybe Yours

I nearly died recently -- from eating a banana.

I was eating a banana as I tried to set up my new digital DVR. All of a sudden I was unable to breathe. I hurried to the kitchen, thinking I would be able to cough the banana into the sink. I tried, but nothing happened.

I pounded on the counter, hoping to attract the attention of my daughter, who was in her bedroom getting ready to leave. She heard me gagging and ran in to see what was going on, thinking at first that one of our dogs was choking. She immediately put her arms around my chest and did the Heimlich maneuver, which dislodged the piece of banana. All I could do was say 'thank you.'

We both were badly shaken by the experience. I don't know whether I would have been able to dislodge the food on my own or not. I doubt it. I know there is a technique for people to use on themselves, but I'm not sure I could have done it properly. Failing that, I would have called 9-1-1 and hoped the paramedics would arrive in time.

I have never been so close to death before, and it is not a pleasant experience. So please, learn the Heimlich maneuver, and make sure others in your business, organization and household do, too. Information is available at the following links:

http://www.wikihow.com/Perform-the-Heimlich-Maneuver-on-Yourself
http://www.wikihow.com/Perform-the-Heimlich-Maneuver

I like these two links more than links provided by various medical organizations because the information is presented in easy-to-understand steps, with illustrations. Please familiarize yourself with the Heimlich maneuver. You never know when you could be called upon to save a life.

Using Art to Help Others

A few months ago, I set up a Web site to offer some of my best photographs for sale. My hope is to use this site to raise funds for some of my favorite non-profit organizations.

I have donated my photographic talents to animal shelters and wolf rescue organizations in

New Mexico in the past. With this new venture, 50 percent of net proceeds from the sale of my photographs will be donated to the charity of the buyer's choice, from the following list:  David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust (runs a nursery for orphaned elephants in Kenya and prepares them to return to the wild); Homeward Bound Golden Retriever Rescue; Memphis Area Golden Retriever Rescue; or Road Runner Food Bank of New Mexico..

I am proud of the photos on the site, and I really hope that my blog readers will help me spread the word about this page: http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/1-ann-sullivan.html

Photos are available in a variety of sizes and materials, including metal and canvas, and as greeting cards. Prints may be ordered either with or without frames. Subject matter includes landscapes, sunsets, ,wildlife, transportation and several other fields.

So please check out this site and help spread the word. All purchases come with a money-back guarantee.

 http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/1-ann-sullivan.html

Gently Greeting a New Year

Today is Jan. 1, the start of a new year.

My day began quietly, with me waking up between 5 and 5:30 a.m. The sky outside was dark and overcast, with no sign of the rising sun. I fed my dogs and let them outside, although they didn't want to stay out for very long.

I went back to bed for a few minutes, then got up, retrieved the newspaper and made a cup of hot tea. Then it was time to walk the dogs. They have long hair, but their coats are not very thick, so I anticipated a short walk.

The dogs, however, had other ideas. They thoroughly enjoyed their walk, and we continued on for 2 miles. As we walked, I realized that we were the first creatures to walk along some of the roads and paths.
On others, I saw tracks of rabbits, jack rabbits and a coyote. The only sounds I heard, aside from the crunching of my boots on snow, were the calls of sand hill cranes and the cawing of crows.

Despite the 19-degree temperature, I didn't feel cold. The wind was calm and my part of the world was quiet and clean. As we neared home, a coyote crossed the road ahead of us but didn't seem to notice us. Thankfully, my dogs didn't see it as it slipped among the desert plants on an undeveloped lot.

This is my favorite way to start a new day and a new year -- quietly and gently, with glimpses of the animals that share this corner of the planet with me.

I wish you all a wonderful, peaceful, happy 2015.

Farewell to 2014

The end of 2014 is just a few days away. This has been a busy year, filled with both sadness and  happiness.

Sadly, we said goodbye in April to our 12-1/2-year-old golden retriever, Tia, due to a brain tumor that ultimately caused unstoppable seizures. Tia was my daughter's best friend, and her death left a huge hole in our family.

I did a lot of fun things this year. In January, I made a trip to Yellowstone National Park, primarily to observe the various thermal features (geysers, mud pots and thermal pools) and observe wildlife in winter. I tried my hand at snowshoeing for the first time, which was a lot of fun. February found me traveling to far northern Canada to visit Churchill, the polar bear capital of the world. The bears were already on the polar ice, but the purpose of the trip was to see and photograph the northern lights. We did see them, but they were not very spectacular. One morning's wind chill was -68 F, which seriously curtailed that day's outdoor activities. I did go on my first dog sled ride, however, albeit a short one.

In March, I drove to Sedona for a couple of days of hiking and photography. Late March sent me on a bus tour of central Europe. The group visited Poland (Warsaw, Krakow, Auschwitz and Birkenau concentration camps) and the 'black Madonna'. Next came beautiful Vienna, where I saw a performance of the world-famous Lippizaner stallions.
We visited Budapest and took a dinner cruise on he Danube, then toured Prague and made a day trip to Bratislava, Slovakia's capital. During this trip I was taken under the wings of three delightful Jewish women who provided great fellowship and fun for me as a solo traveler.

Yellowstone called me back in April for a few days of searching for wolves (seen only through high-powered spotting scopes).

In May, I joined a friend I met on last year's hiking trip to Turkey on a fabulous African safari to Kenya and Tanzania. As luck would have it, no one else signed up for that trip, so we had the safari vehicle to ourselves. We spent many wonderful days on game drives and nature walks, photographing and observing elephants,lions, buffalo, gazelles, cheetahs and dozens of bird species. We ended our trip with a few days in Cape Town, South Africa, including a visit to the cell on Robben Island where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned for 18 years..

July took me hiking in Washington's beautiful Olympic Peninsula and enjoying the quiet beauty and lush wilderness of this special area. A special treat was a river rafting trip on the restored Elwha River.

Another trip to Yellowstone in November blessed me with the opportunity to observe a wolf pack interacting with a couple of grizzly bears (through a spotting scope) and to hear a nearby wolf briefly howl.

This year's travels wrapped up with a hiking trip to the tropical paradise of Costa Rica. Although the hike was more difficult than advertised due to the deep mud and ever-present tree roots on the trails, we had two amazing guides, wonderful food, outstanding accommodations and terrific animal sightings. We saw several kinds of monkeys, macaws, hawks, coatimundis, toucans, sloths, and the most breathtaking sunset anyone in our group of eight travelers had ever seen.

In July, I adopted two papillon sisters, little dogs whose owner was fighting a terminal illness and could no longer care for them. They are almost 8 years old and are quite a change from the retrievers to which I had been accustomed. They are much more needy than my previous dogs, but they have adapted well to their new home. We are working on improving their socialization skills and leash behavior, but they are making progress.

My daughter broke off a long-term relationship with a less-than-ideal guy, and is now dating a wonderful, polite, considerate fellow who is an airplane mechanic in the Air Force. She plans to complete her cosmetology studies by early summer.

So that was our 2014. I am looking forward to another busy year of travel and adventure in 2015, beginning with a hiking trip to New Zealand.

I hope that 2015 brings you happiness, love, peace and good health.

What Happened to Christmas?

What happened to Christmas this year?

The television was filled with screaming commercials about finding 'the perfect gift.' The mail and the newspaper were chock-full of ads for everything from jewelry to pajamas to appliances. The news was filled with stories about the rush of last-minute shoppers. But despite the frenzy, something was missing this year.

Several people mentioned that they just didn't feel the Christmas spirit this year. I understand this sentiment, as I felt exactly the same way. I wasn't much in the Christmas spirit last year either, but I attributed this mostly to my age and the fact that I'm fed up with the overly commercial aspects of this holiday. And of course at my age, I don't want more stuff. There is nothing I need; there is nothing I want.

Even my 21-year-old daughter didn't have the Christmas spirit. So what's behind the holiday malaise this year? Is it the racial discord, the protests and riots that have been sweeping the country? Is it a general change in our country's attitude toward life and the world? Is it an improving, but still somewhat shaky, economy? Or is it, as I suspect, the over-commercialization of what was once a religious holiday? The push to buy, buy, buy for Christmas now begins in August, and it never lets up until the holiday. The traditional greeting of 'Merry Christmas' has been supplanted by 'happy holidays' or 'season's greetings' so as not to offend anybody. Why can't we wish people a Merry Christmas? If someone doesn't celebrate Christmas, fine. Just smile and say 'thank you. The same to you.'

I suspect that what this country needs is a return to old values. We need to rediscover the value of family and friends, the importance of the simple things in life, and focusing on what we have rather than on what we think we need. We need to look for opportunities to be of service to others, for opportunities to share our blessings, our talents and our time. What we share with others will ultimately come back to us tenfold. I believe that if more of us would do this we would find a greater sense of personal satisfaction and perhaps some of the emptiness we feel despite our always busy lives would be replaced by feelings of accomplishment.

Do we really need to get up long before dawn to stand in a long line to fight for the latest electronic gadget? Do we need to put ourselves into debt in order to prove to our family members that we love them? Can we not be satisfied with the gifts of spending time with those we care about, or with making and sharing simple gifts with others?

I was pleased to read a heartwarming article in today's newspaper about the congregation of an Albuquerque Jewish synagogue that prepared and served breakfast on Christmas morning at a homeless shelter so the employees could spend the morning celebrating with their families. Although the members of the synagogue don't celebrate Christmas, they certainly exemplified the Christmas spirit. Even better, several families brought their children to help because they want to instill in them the spirit and importance of giving back.

So kudos to the members of Congregation Albert for helping me see that the spirit of Christmas still lives.

My Christmas Wish

This Christmas I wish for no packages under the tree, and for nothing of material value. I have all that I need, and more. Instead, I wish for

• a return to civility among Americans
• an end to racial discord
• food for the hungry
• housing for the homeless
• an end to wars that take our service men and women and put them in harm's way
• a government that actually listens to the people and does what is best for the country, not what is best for a political party or elected 'representative'
• an end to the war on wolves, cougars, bears and other predators
• respect and concern for the environment
• an end to child and elder abuse
• a government that takes care of its own country first, then worries about those in other countries
• concern for the environment and protections for public lands, rather than allowing special interest groups (cattle ranchers, mining companies, etc.) to plunder and pillage them for corporate profit
• a new view of our world that sees inherent value in other animals, not just economic value 
• a renewed emphasis on what really matters in life.

I recently visited the Central American nation of Costa Rica. The United States could learn a lot from this small country of 5 million residents. Its environmental consciousness is very high. Great strides are being undertaken to protect sensitive plants, animals and lands. Recycling is a way of life. Hotels pride themselves on earning four- or five-leaf certifications for their sustainability programs. People use motorcycles and scooters, not huge gas-guzzling cars and trucks, to get around. They eat locally produced, fresh foods, consisting of mostly seafood, fruits and vegetables. Serving sizes are appropriate, but not the massive size served in America.

The world seems to be at a tipping point, and if we don't do something soon, I'm afraid it will be too late. 

Blowin' in the Wind

I woke up this morning with the words of the song '500 Miles' and the voice of Mary Travers echoing in my head.

Last night, I watched a PBS program titled '50 Years with Peter, Paul and Mary,' and that song was one of those featured in the program. Thinking about the tremendous impact that trio had not only on American music, but on how we as Americans think about ourselves and our nation, made me yearn for a return to the music of that time.

American folk music reached its pinnacle in the 1960s, a turbulent time indeed. Folk music was a vibrant catalyst for social change. It played a prominent role in the civil rights movement, in the anti-nuclear movement, in the farm workers' move for better working conditions, and in the growing opposition to the war in Vietnam. 

Folk music had a powerful message. It rallied people to action, and it brought attention to a variety of social injustices. Prominent musicians such as Bob Dylan, Pete Seeger and Peter, Paul and Mary used their talents to rally people to effect social change. They didn't sing just because they were paid to sing. They sang because they believed in the messages of their music. Some were active participants in the movement to cause social change.

I miss that music. It had a message, it spoke to people and it was easy to listen to. Songs such as 'If I Had a Hammer' and 'Blowin' in the Wind' made me think. This music questioned the status quo and dared us to dream of a better world.

Sadly, it seems that things haven't improved much over the past 50+ years. Pete Seger died earlier this year, Mary Travers in 2009. The voices of a generation, of a series of protests, are falling silent. Folk music and its influence are but a distant memory. We need a new generation of musicians to continue the battle cry against social injustice, wherever it is found.